Friday, January 04, 2013

Has Obama Transmogrified into A Netanyahu?

The hesitancy to name Hagel or another candidate is already diminishing Obama’s stature, erasing more of his post-election glow. While the president ponders, White House aides on an almost daily basis leaked ever-changing and sometimes conflicting estimates of Hagel’s chances, each unattributed comment pounced on as big news. The patterns of the leaks suggest that the noise being made by Hagel’s opponents and pressures by interest groups were having an effect on the president’s thinking, though they may have been simply reflecting the fluctuating predilections and panic among his staff. What was bizarre about the White House’s apparent mood swings about naming Hagel is that nothing that has happened should have come as a great surprise. There was no great reason not to anticipate the nature if not the vehemence of the attacks.

About Me

American born, my wife and I moved to Israel in 1970. We have lived at Shiloh together with our family since 1981. I was in the Betar youth movement in the US and UK. I have worked as a political aide to Members of Knesset and a Minister during 1981-1994, lectured at the Academy for National Studies 1977-1994, was director of Israel's Media Watch 1995-2000 and currently, I work at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center in Jerusalem. I was a guest media columnist on media affairs for The Jerusalem Post, op-ed contributor to various journals and for six years had a weekly media show on Arutz 7 radio. I serve as an unofficial spokesperson for the Jewish Communities in Judea & Samaria.